A Day in the Life: Jaci Van Essen
Another Day in the Life blog here! Hi, my name is Jaci Van Essen and I have been with The Sampson House team since October 2021. I am from Sheldon, IA but moved to Sioux Falls when I got the job and now live in a cute, little studio apartment with my 3-year-old Labordoodle, Zuri.
I work as the Project Manager here at The Sampson House and really no day is truly the same, which is common among positions in the Marketing world. As the Project Manager, I help our Account Executives set, complete, and push the flow of projects for most of our clients. After graduating, I wasn’t sure where my career would take me, but I had passions for organization, creativity/design, and people. As a Project Manager, I get to combine all of those passions in a multitude of ways. Below is an overview of what a typical day can look like for me!
7:30-8:30 am - What can I say, I LOVE my sleep, and with no kids to wake me up in the morning yet, I typically don’t wake up until 7:30-7:45 am. I start my day by getting Zuri food and some time outside before doing my own skincare and makeup. Once I’m dressed and ready, I brew my coffee, fill my YETI with water, and head out the door around 8:45 am. My mornings are usually a time for me to relax, listen to worship music, and mindfully prepare for what the upcoming day holds!
9 am - The workday has officially begun. First thing I do when arriving at the office, is check my Asana inbox and email to see if any clients or teammates have any questions or comments on any ongoing projects. If there are any questions or projects that need attention right away in the morning, this is where I shift my focus.
9:30-10:30 am - Once I’ve gone through my inboxes, and things that need immediate attention are done, I am on to checking all of our client’s social media pages. As the Project Manager, I am in charge of all social accounts. I check the overall aesthetics of the feed, comment back or like comments from consumers, and view the performance on different types of content. The Sampson House is mostly in charge of our client’s Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin accounts. Potentially some TikTok accounts on the way, stay tuned!
11:00 am-12:30 pm - On any given day, the morning is often a popular meeting time for The Sampson House team to catch up on different projects. On Mondays specifically, we have our team meeting at this time. Meetings can range anywhere from just a quick touch base on a specific project, a quick brainstorming session, an in-depth run through an upcoming content shoot, or a two-hour team meeting! One of my favorite parts of being a part of TSH is how collaborative the workspace is!
12:30 pm - Time for lunch! I typically go home for lunch in order to let Zuri outside to run out some of her mid-day energy. And then back to the office to finish out the day strong.
1:30-2:00 pm - If we are shooting any content, I take time after lunch to run to Hy-vee for any last-minute props or food that we might need for the shoot since there is one on my way back to the office. As the Project Manager, I am in charge of sourcing all that we need for content shoots. This can include props such as disco balls, cassette tapes, glassware, plates, silverware, napkins, food, etc. Anything that you can think of to style a photo, I will be getting!
2:30 pm - Onto the content shoot, depending on the scale of the content shoot, I will also assist in styling, clean up different sets, and possibly be a hand model here or there!
3:30-4:30 pm - Throughout the whole day, but typically in the afternoon, I am working on different writing projects for clients and TSH content. A part of my job duties includes writing blogs, interview questions, and social media captions. The topics vary, and I get to learn a lot through research and writing for the different industries our clients are in.
4:30-5 pm - During the last half hour in the office, I make sure to send out any lingering internal approvals for the day, check over the upcoming day’s tasks, and send off any final thoughts/comments for ongoing projects.
After the workday is done, I typically head home, change into workout clothes, and hit the gym. Then I whip up some dinner, watch TV or read a book and snuggle with Zuri for the rest of the evening. I try to get into bed around 10:00 pm, but then usually end up scrolling on TikTok or other social media platforms. Before closing my eyes, I try to read a chapter of Love Does, by Bob Goff to end my day!
If you want to visually see what a typical day looks like for me, check out our Day in Life Instagram highlight! To learn what an Account Executive role within The Sampson House looks like, check out A Day in the Life: Mikena VanLiere.
